Transport properties of AB-stacked bilayer graphene nanoribbons in an electric field

The electronic and thermal properties of AB-stacked bilayer graphene nanoribbons subject to the influences of a transverse electric field are investigated theoretically, including their transport properties. The dispersion relations are found to exhibit a rich dependence on the interlayer interactions, the field strength, and the geometry of the layers. The interlayer coupling will modify the subband curvature, create additional band-edge states, change the subband spacing or energy gap, and separate the partial flat bands. The bandstructures will be symmetric or asymmetric about the Fermi energy for monolayer or bilayer nanoribbons, respectively. The inclusion of a transverse electric field will further alter the bandstructures and lift the degeneracy of the partial flat bands. The chemical-potential-dependent electrical and thermal conductance exhibit a stepwise increase behavior. Variations in the electronic structures with field strength will be reflected in the electrical and thermal conductance. Prominent peaks, as well as single-shoulder and multi-shoulder structures in the electrical and thermal conductance are predicted when varying the electric field strength. The features of the conductance are found to be strongly dependent on the field strength, the geometry, interlayer interactions and temperature.     

Magnetoconductance of graphene nanoribbons

The electronic and transport properties of monolayer and AB-stacked bilayer zigzag graphene nanoribbons subject to the influences of a magnetic field are investigated theoretically. We demonstrate that the magnetic confinement and the size effect affect the electronic properties competitively. In the limit of a strong magnetic field, the magnetic length is much smaller than the ribbon width, and the bulk electrons are confined solely by the magnetic potential. Their properties are independent of the width, and the Landau levels appear. On the other hand, the size effect dominates in the case of narrow ribbons. In addition, the dispersion relations rely sensitively on the interlayer interactions. Such interactions will modify the subband curvature, create additional band-edge states, change the subband spacing or the energy gap, and separate the partial flat bands. The band structures are symmetric or asymmetric about the Fermi energy for monolayer or bilayer nanoribbons, respectively. The chemical-potential-dependent electrical and thermal conductance exhibits a stepwise increase behaviour. The competition between the magnetic confinement and the size effect will also be reflected in the transport properties. The features of the conductance are found to be strongly dependent on the field strength, number of layers, interlayer interactions, and temperature.     

Electron transport in nanotube-ribbon hybrids

The electronic and transport properties of nanotube-ribbon hybrids subject to the influences of a transverse electric field are investigated theoretically. The energy dispersion relations are found to exhibit rich dependence on the nanotube-ribbon interactions, the field strength, and the geometry of the hybrids. The nanotube-ribbon coupling will modify the subband curvature, create additional band-edge states, and change the subband spacing or energy gap. The bandstructures are asymmetric and symmetric about the Fermi energy when the interactions are turned on and off, respectively. The inclusion of a transverse electric field will further alter the bandstructures and lift the degeneracy of the partial flat bands in hybrid (IV). The chemical-potential-dependent electrical and thermal conductance exhibit a stepwise increase behavior. Variations in the electronic structures with field strength will be reflected in the electrical and thermal conductance. Prominent peaks, as well as single-shoulder and multi-shoulder structures in the electrical and thermal conductance are predicted when varying the electric field strength and the nanotube location. The features of the conductance are found to be strongly dependent on the field strength, the geometry and the temperature.     

Conductance of metallic nanoribbons with defects

The conductances of two typical metallic graphene nanoribbons with one and two defects are studied using the tight binding model with the surface Green’s function method. The weak scattering impurities, U ～ 1 eV, induce a dip in the conductance near the Fermi energy for the narrow zigzag graphene nanoribbons. As the impurity scattering strength increases, the conductance behavior at the Fermi energy becomes more complicated and depends on the impurity location, the AA and AB sites. The impurity effect then becomes weak and vanishes with the increase in the width of the zigzag graphene nanoribbons (150 nm). For the narrow armchair graphene nanoribbons, the conductance at the Fermi energy is suppressed by the impurities and becomes zero with the increase in impurity scattering strength, U > 100 eV, for two impurities at the AA sites, but becomes constant for the two impurities at the AB sites. As the width of the graphene nanoribbons increases, the impurity effect on the conductance at the Fermi energy depends sensitively on the vacancy location at the AA or AB sites.     

Ab initio study of the electronic and transport properties of waved graphene nanoribbons

We apply the nonequilibrium Green's function method based on density functional theory to investigate the electronic and transport properties of waved zigzag and armchair graphene nanoribbons. Our calculations show that out-of-plane mechanical deformations have a strong influence on the band structures and transport characteristics of graphene nanoribbons. The computed I-V curves demonstrate that the electrical conductance of graphene nanoribbons is significantly affected by deformations. The relationship between the conductance and the compression ratio is found to be sensitive to the type of the nanoribbon. The results of our study indicate the possibility of mechanical control of the electronic and transport properties of graphene nanoribbons.     

Dimensional crossover of thermal conductance in graphene nanoribbons: a first-principles approach

First-principles density-functional calculations are performed to investigate the thermal transport properties in graphene nanoribbons (GNRs). The dimensional crossover of thermal conductance from one to two dimensions (2D) is clearly demonstrated with increasing ribbon width. The thermal conductance of GNRs of a few nanometers width already exhibits an approximate low-temperature dependence of T(1.5), like that of 2D graphene sheets which is attributed to the quadratic nature of the dispersion relation for the out-of-plane acoustic phonon modes. Using a zone-folding method, we heuristically derive the dimensional crossover of thermal conductance with the increase of ribbon width. Combining our calculations with the experimental phonon mean-free path, some typical values of thermal conductivity at room temperature are estimated for GNRs and for 2D graphene sheet. Our findings clarify the issue of the low-temperature dependence of thermal transport in GNRs and suggest a calibration range of thermal conductivity for experimental measurements in graphene-based materials.     

The influence of edge defects on the electrical and thermal transport of graphene nanoribbons

The electrical conductance, thermopower, thermal conductance and figure of merit of graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) are investigated using Green function formalism in the linear response regime. The Hamiltonian of GNR is described by the tight-binding approach and the effect of elastic interactions due to the electron–electron interaction or the thermal environmental fluctuations is considered by dephasing approach within the self-consistent Born approximation. The results show that the dephasing process leads to the reduction of the electrical transport of GNRs. Since the edge configuration of GNRs has the significant role in their electronic properties, it is shown that the electrical and thermal transports of the GNRs are decreased by the edge defects while the reduction of thermal conductance is more efficient, therefore, the thermal efficiency of GNRs is increased.     

Energy band-gap engineering of graphene nanoribbons

We investigate electronic transport in lithographically patterned graphene ribbon structures where the lateral confinement of charge carriers creates an energy gap near the charge neutrality point. Individual graphene layers are contacted with metal electrodes and patterned into ribbons of varying widths and different crystallographic orientations. The temperature dependent conductance measurements show larger energy gaps opening for narrower ribbons. The sizes of these energy gaps are investigated by measuring the conductance in the nonlinear response regime at low temperatures. We find that the energy gap scales inversely with the ribbon width, thus demonstrating the ability to engineer the band gap of graphene nanostructures by lithographic processes.     

Structural features and electronic properties of Group-IIIB pnictides nanosheets and nanoribbons

Two-dimensional (2D) materials exhibit unique electronic properties compared with their bulks. A systematical study of new type 2D tetragonal materials of MPn (M = Sc and Y; Pn = P, As and Sb) nanosheets and the corresponding nanoribbons are proposed by density functional theory calculations. Several thermodynamically stable 2D tetragonal structures were firstly determined, and such novel tetragonal structures bilayer MPn(100) exhibit extraordinary Weyl semimetal electronic structures, while monolayer MPn(110) are semiconductors. Moreover, bilayer MPn(100) nanoribbons with zigzag edges show metallic behavior, whereas those with linear edges show semiconducting properties. The band gaps for bilayer MPn(100) nanoribbons with linear edges can be significantly tuned by their widths. The zero-gap semiconducting behaviors of 2D tetragonal MPn nanosheets and the tunable band gaps of 1D MPn nanoribbons provide these MPn nanosheets and nanoribbons with promising applications in nanoscale electronic devices.     

Electrical Investigation of Armchair Graphene-Graphdiyne-Graphene Nanoribbons Heterojunctions

In this study,the structural and electronic properties of armchair graphdiyne nanoribbons,which have different widths are studied using the first principle calculation.The results indicate that all studied AGDYNRs show semiconducting behavior in which the band gap values decrease with the increase of nanoribbons width.The electronic and electrical properties of the graphdiyne sandwiched between two graphene nanoribbons are also investigated.The findings of our study indicate that among 4 investigated n-G-GDY-G-NR structures,the highest current is calculated for n = 3(3-G-GDY-G-NR),due to phase transition.     

Electronic properties of Li-doped zigzag graphene nanoribbons

Zigzag graphene nanoribbons (ZGNRs) are known to exhibit metallic behavior. Depending on structural properties such as edge status, doping and width of nanoribbons, the electronic properties of these structures may vary. In this study, changes in electronic properties of crystal by doping Lithium (Li) atom to ZGNR structure are analyzed. In spin polarized calculations are made using Density Functional Theory (DFT) with generalized gradient approximation (GGA) as exchange correlation. As a result of calculations, it has been determined that Li atom affects electronic properties of ZGNR structure significantly. It is observed that ZGNR structure exhibiting metallic behavior in pure state shows half-metal and semiconductor behavior with Li atom.     

氢修饰石墨烯纳米带压电性质的第一性原理研究

采用第一性原理计算方法, 系统研究了不同宽度、不同边缘修饰模式的间隔氢吸附锯齿型石墨烯纳米带的压电性质. 结构优化和结合能计算表明, 氢修饰石墨烯纳米带结构稳定. 氢原子间隔排列的吸附使得纳米带中的相邻碳原子成键及电荷状态不同, 导致拉伸时纳米带中六元碳环的正负电荷中心不再重合, 产生宏观电极化. 纳米带宽度越宽, 包含六元碳环数目越多, 则拉伸时纳米带长度方向上电偶极矩密度越大, 其压电性能越强. 另外, 边缘原子电荷状态决定了无拉伸时纳米带的初始电偶极矩密度, 其大小可以通过改变边缘氢原子的修饰模式来有效调控. 关键词： 石墨烯纳米带 第一性原理 修饰改性 压电性质     

单空位缺陷对石墨纳米带电子结构和输运性质的影响

基于第一性原理电子结构和输运性质计算,研究了单空位缺陷对单层石墨纳米带(包括zigzag型和armchair型带)电子性质的影响.研究发现,单空位缺陷使石墨纳米带在费米面上出现一平直的缺陷态能带;单空位缺陷的引入使zigzag型半导体性的石墨纳米带变为金属性,这在能带工程中有重要的应用价值;奇数宽度的armchair型石墨纳米带表现出金属特性,有着很好的导电性能,同时,偶数宽度的armchair型石墨带虽有金属性的能带结构,但却有类似半导体的伏安特性;单空位缺陷使得奇数宽度的armchair石墨纳米带导电 关键词： 石墨纳米带 单空位缺陷 电子结构 输运性质     

Zigzag型石墨纳米带电子结构和输运性质的第一性原理研究

采用第一性原理电子结构和输运性质计算研究了zigzag型单层石墨纳米带(具有armchair 边缘)的电子结构和输运性质及其边缘空位缺陷效应. 研究发现,完整边缘的zigzag型石墨纳米带是具有一定能隙的半导体带,边缘空位缺陷的存在使得纳米带能隙变小,且缺陷浓度越大,能隙越小,并发生了半导体-金属转变. 利用这些研究结果,将有助于在能带工程中实现其电子结构裁剪. 关键词： 石墨纳米带 空位缺陷 电子结构 输运性质     

Equipartition of current in metallic armchair nanoribbon of graphene-based device

We numerically investigate the mesoscopic electronic transport properties of Bernal-stacked bilayer/trilayer graphene connected with four monolayer graphene terminals. In armchair-terminated metallic bilayer graphene, we show that the current from one incoming terminal can be equally partitioned into other three outgoing terminals near the charge-neutrality point, and the conductance periodically fluctuates, which is independent of the ribbon width but influenced by the interlayer hopping energy. This finding can be clearly understood by using the wave function matching method, in which a quantitative relationship between the periodicity, Fermi energy, and interlayer hopping energy can be reached. Interestingly, for the trilayer case, when the Fermi energy is located around the charge-neutrality point, the fractional quantized conductance 1/(4e²h) can be achieved when system exceeds a critical length.     

Zigzag型石墨纳米带电子结构和输运性质的第一性原理研究

采用第一性原理电子结构和输运性质计算研究了zigzag型单层石墨纳米带(具有armchair 边缘)的电子结构和输运性质及其边缘空位缺陷效应. 研究发现，完整边缘的zigzag型石墨纳米带是具有一定能隙的半导体带，边缘空位缺陷的存在使得纳米带能隙变小，且缺陷浓度越大，能隙越小，并发生了半导体-金属转变. 利用这些研究结果，将有助于在能带工程中实现其电子结构裁剪.     

L型石墨纳米结的热输运

利用非平衡格林函数方法研究了由半无限长扶手椅型和锯齿型边界石墨纳米带连接而成的L型石墨纳米结的热输运性质.结果表明,L型石墨纳米结的热导依赖于L型石墨纳米结的夹角和石墨纳米带的宽度.在L型石墨纳米结的夹角从30°增加到90°再增加到150°过程中,其热导显著增大.夹角为90°的L型石墨纳米结的热导随着扶手椅型纳米带宽度增加时,在低温区热导随着宽度的增大而降低,在高温区热导随宽度的增大而升高.对于夹角为150°的L型石墨纳米结,其热导无论是在低温区还是在高温区都随着锯齿型纳米带宽度的增加而降低.利用声子透射谱对这些热输运现象进行了合理的解释.研究结果阐明了不同L型石墨纳米结中的热输运机理,为设计基于石墨纳米结的热输运器件提供了重要的物理模型和理论依据. 关键词： 石墨纳米结 热输运 热导     

多空穴错位分布对石墨纳米带中热输运的影响

利用非平衡格林函数方法研究了石墨纳米带中三空穴错位分布对热输运性质的影响.研究结果发现:三空穴竖直并排结构对低频声子的散射较小,导致低温区域三空穴竖直并排时热导最大,而在高频区域,三空穴竖直并排结构对高频声子的散射较大,导致较高温度区域三空穴竖直并排时热导最小;三空穴的相对错位分布仅能较大幅度地调节面内声学模高频声子的透射概率,而三空穴的相对错位分布能较大幅度地调节垂直振动膜高频声子和低频声子的透射概率,导致三空穴的相对错位分布不仅能大幅调节面内声学模和垂直振动模的高温热导,也能大幅调节垂直振动模的低温热导.研究结果阐明了空穴位置不同的石墨纳米带的热导特性,为设计基于石墨纳米带的热输运量子器件提供了有效的理论依据.     

Electronic properties and quantum transport in Graphene-based nanostructures

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) represent a novel class of low-dimensional materials. All these graphene-based nanostructures are expected to display the extraordinary electronic, thermal and mechanical properties of graphene and are thus promising candidates for a wide range of nanoscience and nanotechnology applications. In this paper, the electronic and quantum transport properties of these carbon nanomaterials are reviewed. Although these systems share the similar graphene electronic structure, confinement effects are playing a crucial role. Indeed, the lateral confinement of charge carriers could create an energy gap near the charge neutrality point, depending on the width of the ribbon, the nanotube diameter, the stacking of the carbon layers regarding the different crystallographic orientations involved. After reviewing the transport properties of defect-free systems, doping and topological defects (including edge disorder) are also proposed as tools to taylor the quantum conductance in these materials. Their unusual electronic and transport properties promote these carbon nanomaterials as promising candidates for new building blocks in a future carbon-based nanoelectronics, thus opening alternatives to present silicon-based electronics devices.     

Geometry and temperature effects of the interfacial thermal conductance in copper- and nickel-graphene nanocomposites

Graphene has excellent mechanical, electrical and thermal properties. Recently, graphene-metal composites have been proposed as a means to combine the properties of metals with those of graphene, leading to mechanically, electrically and thermally functional materials. The understanding of metal-graphene nanocomposites is of critical importance in developing next-generation electrical, thermal and energy devices, but we currently lack a fundamental understanding of how their geometry and composition control their thermal properties. Here we report a series of atomistic simulations, aimed at assessing the geometry and temperature effects of the thermal interface conductance for copper- and nickel-graphene nanocomposites. We find that copper-graphene and nickel-graphene nanocomposites have similar thermal interface conductances, but that both cases show a strong performance dependence on the number of graphene layers between metal phases. Single-graphene-layer nanocomposites have the highest thermal interface conductance, approaching ~500 MW m(-2) K(-1). The thermal interface conductance reduces to half this value in metal-bilayer graphene nanocomposites, and for more than three layers of graphene the thermal interface conductances further reduces to ~100 MW m(-2) K(-1) and becomes independent with respect to the number of layers of graphene. This dependence is attributed to the relatively stronger bonding between the metal and graphene layer, and relatively weaker bonding between graphene layers. Our results suggest that designs combining metal with single graphene layers provide the best thermal properties.